Feeding and pattern mechanism for warp-knitting machines



E. H. WALTER. FEEDING AND PATTERN MECHANISM FOR WARP KNITTING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 24, 1919.

. 3 1 96 Patented 0013. 12, 1920.

4 SHEETS-SHEET I.

Olir. "I {I ITTO/P/VEX E. H. WALTER.

FEEDING AND PATTERN MECHANISM FOR WARP KNITTING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 24, I919.

Patented Oct. 12, 1920.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2- I I I L I I wnswrm Edward 5 lVz li er 5y I W'GW Arrow/5y E. H. WALTER. FEEDING AND PATTERN MECHANISM FOR WARP KNITTING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 24, 1919. 1,355,196.

Patented Oct. 12, 1920 4 SHEETSSHEET 3- 60}: 1f

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I M VE/vrw? Edward [Va/ er Arm/MEX E. H. WALTER. FEEDING AND PATTERN MECHANISM FOR WARP KNITTING MACHINES.

' APPLICATION FILED MAY 24, I919. 1 ,355,1 96. Patented Oct. 12, 1920.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

UNITED s ArEs PATENT, OFFICE.

EDWARD WALTER, OF WOODLYNNE, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO JOHN EPPLER, 0F PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

FEEDING AND PATTERN MECHANISM FOR WARP-KNITTING MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 12, 1920.

Application filed May 24, 1919. Serial No. 299,594.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD H. WnL'rER, a citizen ofthe United States, residing at \Voodlynne, county of Camden, and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Feeding and Pattern Mechanism for arp-Knitting Machines, of which the following i a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to the manufacture of knitted fabric and comprises a machine, novel in many of its parts, for the production of fiat knitted goods of silk, cotton or woolen yarn; any one, two or all three materials being used at the same time.

It is often desirable, in the manufacture of ladies sweaters and "other articles, to produce a knit fabric which shall have a silk facing and a cotton binder. Further,

to secure warmth, it may be desirable to provide a woolen filler, introduced into the backof the fabric, which may or may not be'napped, in the usual manner, to give a soft, fluffy inner surface to the garment.

My improved knitting machine, by which the above results may be attained, comprises a slotted knitting bar carrying vertical needles and extending the width of the fabric. Directly above the needle bar is arranged a feeder bar carrying'eyes through which warp threads are fed to the needles. The needles and the feeder bar are manipulated to produce a chain stitch on each needle from the yarn fed through the eye corresponding to said needle. To the rear of the needles and eyes is arranged a yarn carrier adapted to be moved, like a loom shuttle, horizontally back and forth the width of the goods and to feed a single thread to the needles in the fear, in the form of a weft, which is knitted in with the chain stitches before mentioned. The yarn carrier also carries another feed by which a thread, preferably of wool, maybe fed to the needles, in the front, and be bound into the,fabric by the needles and eyes, in their interrelated knitting movements, to form a reinforcement or backing for the fabric.

The warp, the weft and the backing may be of different colors, as Well as of different materials, to'produce different effects. Designs maybe introduced by means of tuck stitches arranged in patterns, to give further varied effects.

These designs are produced by a needle actuating mechanism controlled by a pattern chain.

I have found that in the rapid raising of the needle when the machine is knitting, a loop, as it is cast off the open latch, is apt to snap the latch shut, causing'the hook of the needle to fail to catch the new thread. To obviate this, I introduce a wire stop directly back of the needles, against which the latches strike when they are thrown upward, and I provide for removing said wire stop out of action at the time it is desired to have the latches close. a

One of the inconveniences of a knitting machine, wherein a yarn carrier feeds the yarn across the width of the goods like a shuttle, is the extra length required at the end of the machine for providing operating -means for. moving the carrier. Inmy machine 1 have done away with the necessity for this extra out-rigging by throwing my carrier across by means of a flexible connection, which passes around back of the machine, and attaches at both ends to the part moving the carrier, in the form of an endless chain. This feature makes the knitting machine much moreself-contained and greatly reduces the floor space required.

These and other new features and advantages of my invention will be readily grasped by any one skilled in the art, from the following detailed description in connection with the accompanying drawings,

in which Figure is a partial end view of a knitting machine embodying my invention.

F g. 2 is a partial rear View of same. Fig. 3 i an enlarged cross-section through the needle bar and correlated. parts.

Fig. 4 is a partial rear view of the parts shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a partial shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

Fig. 6 is a partial frontviewof parts shown in Fig. 3.

plan view of parts' Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing the method of laying in the backing thread between the needles and the warp.

Fig. 8 is a cross-section through the machine with some of the parts omitted.

Fig. 9 is an enlarged detail sectional view showing the wire to guard the latches.

10 is an end view, and Fig. 11 a partial plan view, of the guard wire mechanism.

Fig. 12 is a horizontal section showing the endless chain drive for the yarn carrier.

Figs. 13, 14, 15 and 16 are views showing the-different knitting positions of the needles, in their high, intermediate and low positions and in the tucking position.

Fig. 17 is a greatly magnified view of a portion of fabric lmit in my machine, showing the stitch and method of binding in the difl'erent threads! Fig. 18 is a diagram illustrating a piece of fabric having tuck stitches therein.

The needle bar a has vertical slots in its 7 rear face in which are carried knitting neeward, between the needles, through slots in the top of the needle bar. Above the sinker bar is arranged a slide 11., upon which the yarn carrier 2' is moved back and forth across the machine, carrying the eye j for feeding the weft thread "in behind the nee? dles, and. an eye I: for feeding the extra fill-' ingpr backing thread in front of the needles.

he method of driving is as follows (see particularly Figs. 1, '2 and '12): Carrier d is positively moved back and forth on bar a by the endless chain Z, both ends of which are attached to the carrier. The chain passes across the machine in front, next to bar 0, over pulleys m, back to the rear, over pulleys 'n and along the rear, where it is attached to a block 0 slidable on a bar p extending from side to side of the machine. To maintain proper tension on the chain, pulleys m may be adjustably mounted on brackets attached to the machine frame.

Block 0 has slotted connection with a lever g pivoted on the back of the machine frame such that by swinging the lever back and forth the block 0 is moved from side to side of the machine on bar p, at the rear, and the carrier (Z is similarly moved on its slide a at the front.

A lever 7", pivoted at the rear of the machine frame, is connected with lever g'by an adjustable link 8. Lever 1' carries a roller which travels in a slot in cam t mounted on a shaft u. This shaft may carry belt pulleys (not shown) for power driving, or it may be driven by hand in the following manner.

Shaft it carries a gear '0 which meshes with a gear to, half its diameter, on a shaft 11: mounted in bearings on the frame of the machine, parallel to shaft u. At its front end shaft a: has a hand wheel which, when given one complete turn, throws the cam carrier (1 across the width of the machine in one direction.

Carrier d has an upstanding finger 20, hinged to turn backward but spring-pressed to a vertical position,see Figs. 3 and 4. In this position finger 20 extends directly behind bar It upon which the yarn carrier 1' slides. In the movement of carrier d across the machine, as above described, finger 20 contacts with one side or the other of'yarn carrier 11 and slides it along its bar h. It is necessary that the yarn carrier shall travel from end to end of the row of needles in the needle bar, and that its movement shall be stopped as soon as it has passed the last needle at either end, so there will be no unnecessary yarn fed-out beyond the end needle to form a slack 100 in the return movement of the carrier. l therefore, arrange that when the yarn carrier has moved to one side far enough to have just fed yarn to the end needle on that side, finger 20 is thrown out from behind the carrier, by a cam 21, leaving the yarn carrier stationary and itself moving beyond it and dropping off the end of cam 21 on the other side 0f needle row, the cams facing each other, so

that finger 20 will strike one of them at each end of its throw, and thereby be disengaged from the yarn carrier, and transferred to the opposite side thereof to move the yarn carrier in the reverse direction. Bar 22 is pro-' vided with holes for the pivot pins of the cams 21 corresponding to various widths of fabric. Thus, while the cam carrier d makes its full throw, it is shunted past the yarn carrier at the proper times, so that the latter moves only its required throw to feed the number of needles in the width of fabric being knit. Cam 21 is pivoted at its outer endto the bar and is held so that its inner end is ressed forwardly in the path of finthe frame. Lever 44 is operated byacam' the needle bar by links 31 mounted on a shaft 32, which is rocked back and forth in the following manner. One end of shaft 32 carries an arm 33, which is connected by link 34 with a lever 35, pivoted to the frame.

Lever 35 is spring-held against a cam 36 on the end of a shaft 37 parallel to shaft 32 and driven by bevel gearing 38 from shaft :12.

Feeder bar 30 carries eyes 40 through which the warp threads 41 are fed to the needles there being an eye for each needle, so that the usual crochet chain will be knit by each needle to which a thread 41 is fed, as shown in Fig. 17 by the heavy shaded yarn marked 41. The warp threads are wound on a beam 42 supported in appropropriate bearings above the machine. These warp threads lead down from beam 42, over fixed rods 43, and directly to eyes 40. To preserve a suitable tension on the warp a cord 43 passes around thewarp beam and carries a weight on its end. During the throw of the yarn carrier across the machine it is necessary to relieve the tension on the warp to allow the threads to be individually knit, one after the other, without straining them. In order to accomplish this, I lead the opposite end of cord 43 down to the machine and attach it to a lever 44 pivoted to 45 on shaft 37 so that in every revolution of the shaft, cord 43 is pulled to raise its weight and turn the warp beam ahead to allow enough slack in threads 41 for them to be knit as required. After the row has been knit, cord 43 is relaxed again and the warp beam slips back part way only, due to the advance of the entire warp in knitting the row.

In the process of knitting, the needles are pressed into their lower positions, shown in Figs. 6 and 15, with respect to the sinkers, by cam e on the cam slide traveling across the machine and acting on the needles consecutively. The needles are all thrown up again at once by a needle actuating mechanism arranged below them. This consists of ahexagonfdrum 46 carried in blocks which are slidable in vertical slots in the frame. The blocks are carried, as shown for one end in Fig. 8, by links 7 0 connecting them with levers 47 pivoted to the frame. These levers carry rollers which rest upon cams 48 on shaft 28.

The hexagon drum 46 carries a chain of needle actuating plates 49, shown in section 1 in Fig. 3. These cards are flat strips of metal which extend the full width of the machine, directly that when earns 48 act to raise shaft 46, the

needle actuating plate which is at the movement in a horizontal position beneath the needles will be forced up, contact with the depending ends thereof, and press them up beneath the needles, so

ward into the position shown in Fig. 13 with respect to their sinkers.

In order to provide for tuck stitches, where certain needles are prevented from casting off their loops, holes 50 are provided in some of the needle actuating plates and so arranged as to allow certain. of the needles to enter and not be pushed up the full distance. Drum 46 is provided with longitudinal grooves into which the needles alining with holes 50 will extend, and therefore these needles will only be pushed upward about half the regular distance, as indicated in Fig. 16. Therefore a chain of needle-actuating plates is required and it is necessary. 80 to turn drum 46 to bring certain plates into active posit-ion according to the pattern desired. v

For this purpose, a ratchet wheel 51 is attached to drum 46 and a lever 52, carrying a pawl for operating the ratchet, is pivoted to the frame. As the needle actuating mechanism is raised every throw of the yarn car rier, lever 52 is spring-pressed in against its ratchet, so that on the downward ,motion of the mechanism, thepawl acts upon one tooth of the ratchet toturn drum 46 one sixth of a revolution, bringing a new plate into active position.

This would turn the ratchet every throw of the machine and require a long chain of needle actuating plates to complete a pattern, many consecutive plates being alike. T o obviate the necessity for such a number of plates, 1 provide a pattern chain 53, 100 mounted on a. wheel carrying a ratchet 54; This ratchet is turned one tooth every throw of the machine by a pawl 55 operated by the lever 47. The pattern chain is located in juxtaposition to a roller 56 on lever 52, so 105 that high links on the chain act upon the roller to push lever 52 out of engagement with ratchet wheel 51 of the needle actuating mechanism.

By this means a pattern comprising a considerable number of picks or rows of stitches may be knit with a comparatively few lates on the. needle actuating mechanism. TVhen a number of rows are similar, ahigh link on the pattern chain holds the pawl away from its ratchet wheel and the same plate is maintained in action for several rows.

hen the needle actuating mechanism is raised, by the action of cam 48 on lever 47, which occurs at the end of every row of knitting, the active plate strikes the lower extensions of all the needles and presses them upward in their slots with avery quick action. One result of this is that the latches of the needles are apt to snap shut,;upon the casting of the loop, before the yarn carrier has fed yarn to them.

To overcome this difiiculty, I provide a latch guard (see Figs. 9, 10 and 11) consisting of a taut wire 6) strung from side to side of the machine directly behind the needles in position to prevent the latches .prevent interference during the knitting action. For this purpose, the wire is attached at its ends to arms 61, of which the arm on one side of the machine is shown in Figs. 10 and 11. Arms 61 are pivoted to brackets 62 attached, as by screws 63, to the ends of the sinker bar f projecting through its supporting slots in members 64 of the frame.

A pin 65 on member 64 underlies the end of each arm 61, and acts upon a cam surface 66 to raise the arm on the rearward move-' ment of the sinker bar. Thus, when the needles are thrown up by the actuating mechanism the sinkers are in their forward position and the arms.64 and wire are in the position shown in Fig. 10, the wire bethreads 41 are wound around the needles by the eyes 40 and shogging them in the usual manner, and return them to the positionin which they are shown in Fig. 3, in front of the line of needles. Then the am carrier '5 asses across the machine, aying in the blnder thread 68 over the latches of the needles, and at the same time feeding the backing thread 69 in. between the needles and the warp threads 41. Cam 6 moves across with the yarn carrier, drawing the needles down and knitting the binder and warp threads together in the manner indicated in the enlarged drawing of the fabric, Fig. 17. The backing thread 69, not

.are wound around the nee being on the latch side of the needles, is not knitted in' with the other-threads but is merely bound in by the wasp threads as they As before stated, this backing thread is not necessary in the construction of the 'fabric, but is added to give weight and warmth to the goods and for the purpose of na pingif desired. Having now fully described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is: i 1. Ina flat knitting machine, the combination with a bank of independent needles, of means to feed warp threads to the needles, a yarn carri'en'means to move the yarn carrier along the bank of needles and thereby feed a weft thread successively to all the needles, and means to actuate the needles successively to interloop all the threads.

2. In a flat knitting machine, the combination with a bank of independent needles,

of means to feed warp threads to the needles, means to actuate the needles successively, a. weft feed movable along the bank of needles adapted to feed a weft thread into such relation to the needles as to interloop with itself and with the warp thread, on the actuation of the needles, and a second weft feed movable along the bank of needles and adapted to lay a second weft thread into position to be confined by the warp threads against the body of the fabric in the ma nipulation of the warp thread. '3. In a flat knitting machine, in combination, a bank of needles, of a cam adapted to lower the needles successively, a bank of eyes for leading warp threads to the needles, a yarn carrier for feeding a weft thread to the needles, a second feed on the yarn carrier for leading a backing thread to the needles, and means for operating the cam, the eyes and the yarn carrier.

4,111 a flat knitting machine, the combination with a bank of needles, of a 'cam adapted to lower the needles successively, a yarn carrier for feeding a weft thread to the needles, means for reciprocating the cam and the yarn carrier, a bank of eyes for leading warp threads to the needles between.

reciprocations of the cam, and means for simultaneously raising all of the active needles after the cam has passed the needles on each reciprocation.

5. In a flat knitting machine, in combi-- nation, a bankof needles, of a cam adapted to lower the needles successively, a bank of eyes for leading warp threads to the needles. a carrier adapted to feed a weft thread to :the fronts of the needles and a second thread to the backs of the needles, and means to actuate the cam, the eyes and the carrier in correlated knitting movements.

6. In a flat knitting machine, the combination with a bank of independent latch needles, of warp feeds for the respective needles movable in front and back of said bank, each warp feed being also movable .on opposite sides of its corresponding needle, a weft feed movable along the bank of needles and adapted to feed a weft thread along one side of the needle bank and into operative relation with the needle latches, a second weft feed movable along the bank of needles and adapted to lay a second weft thread along the opposite side of the needle bank, means to successively depress the neegles, and means to simultaneously lift neeles.

7. In a flat knitting machine,.in combination, a bank of needles,a bank of eyes for leading warp threads to the needles, a yarn erating the needles, means connected with the cam carrier for operating the yarn earrier, and means for breaking said connecting means when the yarn carrier has reached the end of its stroke.

,8. In a flat knitting machine, the combination with a bank of needles, a bank of eyes for leading warp threads to the needles. a yarn carrier for feeding weft threads to the needles, a cam carrier for operating the needles,-and means for reciprocating the cam carrier, of a connection on the cam carrier for moving the yarn carrier, and means acting when the yarn carrier has fed thread to the end needle of the bank to break said connection. whereby the yarn carrier remains stationary while the cam slide continues and completes its full stroke.

9. In a fiat knitting machine, the combination with a bank of needles, a bank ofeyes for leading warp threads to the needles, a yarn carrier for feeding weft threads to the needles, a cam carrier for operating the needles, and means for reciprocating the cam carrier, of a connection on the cam carrier for moving the yarn carrier in one direction, and means operable when the yarn carrier has reached the end of its stroke to make said connections jump by the yarn carrier to be in position to move it in the opposite direction on the return stroke of the cam slide.

10. In a fiat knitting machine, the combination with a bank of independent needles, of means to feed warp threads tothe needles, a needle actuating cam, a cam carrier movable back and forth along the bank of needles, :1 finger on the cam carrier, a weft thread carrier in the path of travel of the finger in the normal position of the .latter and movable by the finger in the movement of the cam carrier, and a cam adapted to move the finger out of driving relation with the weft thread carrier and cause it to override it and position itself for returning the weft thread carrier in the return movement of the cam carrier.

- 11. In a flat knitting machine, the combination with a bank of needles and a stitch cam adapted to depress the needles successively, of a bank of eyes for leading warp threads to the needles, a yarn carrier for feeding a weft threadto the needles, means to reciprocate the cam and the weft yarn carrier. a rotatable and reciprocating pattern mechanism to elevate the active needles simultaneously, means for raising said pattern mechanism, a ratchet wheel on the pattern mechanism, and a pattern controlled pawl for rotating the needle pattern mechanism.

12-. In a flat knitting machine, the combination with a bank of needles and a stitch cam adapted to depress the needles successively, of a rotatable drum, pattern plates carried by the drum for simultaneously raising the active needles, a ratchet wheel connected to the drum, means for raising,

the drum, a pawl for rotating the .drum, a

pattern chain for controlling the pawl, and

means connected to the drum raising means for actuating the pattern chain. 13. In a fiat knitting machine, the combination with a bank of needles and a stitch cam adapted to depress the needles successively, of a rotatable drum, pattern plates carried by the drum for simultaneously raising the active needles, .a ratchet wheel connected to the drum, means for raising the drum, apawl for rotating the drum, a pattern chain for controlling the pawl, a ratchet wheel for actuating the pattern chain, and a pawl connected to the drum raising means for actuating the pattern chain ratchet wheel. 7

1'4. In a flat knitting machine, the combination with a bank of independent needles,

of a yarn feed adapted to deliver warp threads to the respective needles, a yarn feed reciprocable along the'needle bank and adapted to deliver a weft thread to the needles, a cam reciprocable along the needle bank and adapted to depress the needles, and pattern mechanism for elevating the needles simultaneously and each to apredetermined height.

In testimony of which invention I have hereunto set my hand, at Philadelphia, on this 22nd day of May, 1919.

. EDWARD H. -WALTER. 

